Sanlam Kenya shareholding will remain unchanged despite its parent firm forming a joint venture with Allianz SE.
The company said it would continue to be 57.14 percent owned by Hubris Holdings Limited, which is fully owned by Sanlam Limited—a South African company listed on South Africa’s Johannesburg Stock Exchange.
The announcement follows the approval of the deal between Sanlam Limited and Allianz SE to form a joint venture called Sanlam Allianz Africa in which Allianz will hold about 40 percent stake.
“In acquiring approximately 40 percent of the joint venture company, Allianz will not attain ‘effective control’ of Sanlam Kenya as defined in the Capital Markets (Takeovers and Mergers) Regulations 2002. There will be no change in the direct shareholding of Sanlam Kenya,” said Sanlam Kenya.
The insurer, which is listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange, cautioned investors that the transaction may have a material effect on the value of its shares.
The Sanlam Kenya share on Wednesday remained unchanged at Sh8 on the NSE, leaving it with a market capitalisation of Sh1.15 billion.
Sanlam Limited and Allianz had in May 2 last year agreed on an initial shareholding split of 60:40, respectively, but said on Tuesday they are now working on certain post-closing adjustments to get the final shareholding split.
The 60/40 ownership was based on the relative appraised value of the assets the two were contributing as of June 30, 2021.
The two say the joint venture is expected to have a combined group equity value of about R35 billion (Sh266 billion), giving customers a broader offering of insurance products tailored to their needs.
Sanlam and Allianz will contribute their respective African operations into a newly incorporated joint venture. South Africa is excluded from the deal while Namibia will be included later.
Once Namibia is included in the deal, Allianz will have the option to increase its shareholding to a maximum of 49 percent, leaving Sanlam with a controlling stake.
